Past Events

Fall 2022

2022 Healthcare Leaders Reception banner

Christopher King Will Be Honored at the National Association of Health Services Executives – Washington Metropolitan Area Chapter’s 2022 Healthcare Leaders Reception

September 26th, 2022

On Wednesday, September 28, 2022, the National Association of Health Services Executives – Washington Metropolitan Area Chapter held its annual celebration of healthcare executives, recognizing distinguished healthcare leaders for their contributions in their respective communities. Dr. Christopher King was one of the 2022 Distinguished Honorees.…

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How to Have a Conversation, Episode 1: “We Were Confronting Each Other and We Were Being Brave”, María José Pareja Rozo Explores How In Your Shoes Facilitates Conversations

August 31st, 2022

María José Pareja Rozo, Graduate Student of the Medical Humanities Initiative in the 2021-2022 academic year, launched How to Have a Conversation, a podcast about how the arts and humanities engage us in conversation. The pilot episode focuses on the In Your Shoes project, co-created by Derek Goldman.…

Strathairn starts in "Remember This: The Lesson of Jan Karski", performing the role of Jan Karski

Remember This: The Lesson of Jan Karski Feature Film, Co-Written and Co-Directed by Derek Goldman, Premiered at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

July 24th, 2022

Remember This: The Lesson of Jan Karski, the celebrated play written by Clark Young and Derek Goldman, has been developed into a cinematic adaptation, which premiered at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival on July 24, 2022. The project was directed by Goldman and Jeff Hutchens, produced by documentary filmmaker Eva Anisko, and with David Strathairn reprising his role as Karski, all of whom attended the premier. The post-film Q&A was moderated by Carey Perloff, former Artistic Director of the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco.…

Spring 2022

Banner for the event "Double Visions: Aminatta Forna and Laila Lalami at the PEN America World Voices Festival"

Double Visions: Aminatta Forna and Laila Lalami at the 2022 PEN America: World Voices Festival

May 14th, 2022

The second day of the 2022 PEN America: World Voices Festival featured Aminatta Forna in conversation with Pulitzer Prize Finalist Laila Lalami. Both of these authors draw from their own lives to explore the desire for belonging in boundary-crossing experiences centered on identity, notions of place, and questions of origin. Together, they discussed how their nonfiction works document life on the edges of belonging—across cultures, countries, and eras.…

Banner for the event "Abdulrazak Gurnah at the PEN America World Voices Festival"

Nobel Laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah in Conversation with Aminatta Forna and Others at the 2022 PEN America: World Voices Festival

May 13th, 2022

The opening night of the 2022 PEN America: World Voices Festival celebrated the work of Tanzanian novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah, in his first appearance in the United States after being awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature last October. This event, which took place in New York on May 13, featured readings, performances, and a conversation with Aminatta Forna, Nadifa Mohamed, Esau Pritchett, Alsarah, and others.…

The SSM – Mental Health Video Podcast on Flourishing and Health in Critical Perspective. The panelists are Emily Mendenhall and Sarah S. Willen

Social Science & Medicine – Mental Health Video Podcast: Emily Mendenhall on Flourishing and Health in Critical Perspective

April 13th, 2022

Emily Mendenhall and Sarah S. Willen talk about “Flourishing and Health in Critical Perspective: An Invitation to Interdisciplinary Dialogue,” the first series of the Social Science & Medicine – Mental Health journal. The conversation centers around how interdisciplinary dialogue can improve the way we study flourishing and health – and the clinical and policy interventions we propose.…

Collage of images of the launch of Emily Mendenhall's Unmasked, showing the author, students, and members of the STIA Program, the Global Health Initiative and the Mortara Center for International Studies, at the Riggs Library

The Annual Maloy Distinguished Lecture on Global Health | Unmasked: COVID, Community, and the Case of Okoboji by Emily Mendenhall

April 4th, 2022

On April 4 , 2022, the Science, Technology and International Affairs (STIA) Program, in partnership with the Global Health Initiative and the Mortara Center for International Studies, will host The Annual Maloy Distinguished Lecture on Global Health. Join the panel discussion of Emily Mendenhall’s newest book, Unmasked: COVID, Community, and the Case of Okoboji.…

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COVID, Quickly, Episode 27: “Second Boosters, Masks in the Next Wave and Smart Risk Decisions”, Scientific American Looks at Emily Mendenhall’s Research About Attitudes Toward Masks

April 1st, 2022

In this episode of the “COVID, Quickly”, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewis and Josh Fischman look at Emily Mendenhall’s research on people’s attitudes towards masks, to understand how the decision to wear a mask reflects people’s perceptions of risk and views about government.…

2022 Health Humanities Conference

The Georgetown Medical Humanities Initiative Co-Sponsored the 2022 Health Humanities Conference

March 28th, 2022

The Georgetown Medical Humanities Initiative was one of the sponsors of the 2022 Health Humanities Conference, which took place on March 25, 26 and 27, 2022, and was co-hosted by the Center for Health Humanities, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences; the Center for Literature and Medicine, Hiram College; and the Health, Medicine, and Society Program, Lehigh University.…

In Your Shoes Reckoning with Our PastImagining Our Future performance

“In Your Shoes: Reckoning with Our Past/Imagining Our Future“ Closes the 2022 Lannan Symposium “Beyond Identity: Reimagining the American Narrative”

March 23rd, 2022

This performance, which was the closing event of the 2022 Lannan Symposium, “Beyond Identity: Reimagining the American Narrative,” displayed The Lab’s award-winning In Your Shoes methodology, created and developed around the world by Derek Goldman, in which participants have deep, open conversations around a topic and then perform one another’s perspectives.…

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NutrireCoLab Episode 7: Interview with Professor Emily Mendenhall about her New Book Unmasked

March 1st, 2022

Lauren Carruth interviews Emily Mendenhall about how people in her hometown in northwest Iowa responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. She describes why people unmasked and how social relations within the community played out over the course of the pandemic. Many people were very cautious, while some people ignored public health recommendations for personal gain.…

Panelists of the An Interdisciplinary Approach to Life's Big Questions event: Daniel Kahneman, Ruth Ozeki, Brianne Bilsky, Oleg Svet, Alan Lightman, and Nicoletta Pireddu

An Interdisciplinary Approach to Life’s Big Questions

February 22nd, 2022

In this event, held online on February 22, 2022 and hosted by the Georgetown Humanities Initiative, an interdisciplinary panel of world-renowned experts addressed the issue of uncertainty in human existence.…

NutrireCoLab logo

NutrireCoLab Episode 5: Edna Bosire in Conversation with Emily Mendenhall on her Work at the Intersection of Health, Nutrition, Anthropology, and Health Systems

February 14th, 2022

Emily Mendenhall interviews her longtime colleague Edna Bosire about her personal journey in the field of anthropology, and her work at the intersection of health, nutrition, anthropology, and health systems. Bosire also provides insights into her work as an ethnographer of health policy and systems in Malawi and in her work with Health Systems Global.…

Dr. King at the "Race, Place, And Structural Racism: A Review Of Health And History In DC" event

Christopher King Moderated Health Affairs Event about Structural Racism and Health Outcomes in DC

February 7th, 2022

On Monday February 7, 2022, Dr. Christopher King, along with Amanda Michelle Gomez, moderated the “Race, Place, And Structural Racism: A Review Of Health And History In DC” discussion, hosted by Health Affairs. Dr. King provided historical background on the relationship between structural racism and historical events socially, economically, and politically disenfranchised Black residents in the District of Columbia, which have yielded stark differences in health outcomes by race and place.…

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Laura Hartmann-Villalta Presented Her Work at the Modern Language Association 2022 Convention

January 7th, 2022

Laura Hartmann-Villalta presented her work on care at the Keywords in English and Anglophone Studies panel at the Modern Language Association 2022 Convention, which took place in Washington, DC, and online from 6 to 9 January, 2022. The panel covered topics that included the digital humanities, the medical humanities, literature and the global, care work, and sound studies.…

Fall 2021

Aminatta Forna & John Freeman in conversation

Aminatta Forna in Conversation with John Freeman

November 9th, 2021

On November 9th, 2021, the Lannan Center presented a reading and talk featuring author Aminatta Forna and editor John Freeman to discuss her recently launched book, The Window Seat.…

The "Healing with poisons" virtual event. Speaker Yan Liu is sharing his screen displaying an image of Sun Simiao (7th century), with the quote "Among the myriad things in the world, nothing cannot be a medicine". The other panelists are Michelle C. Wang, Lakshmi Krishnan and Michael Denman

Healing with Poisons: The Circulation of Medical Knowledge in Medieval China – Asia in Depth Seminar

October 7th, 2021

During China’s formative era of pharmacy, poisons were strategically deployed as healing agents to cure everything from chills to pains to epidemics. Focusing on the early Tang period (7th and 8th centuries), in this talk Professor Yan Liu (SUNY-Buffalo) illustrates how the court regulated the use of poisons and commissioned new medical treatises to achieve effective governance.…

Sofi Oksanen

An Evening with Acclaimed Writer Sofi Oksanen

September 21st, 2021

Virtual reading and conversation with one of the most awarded literary authors in Scandinavia, Finnish-Estonian novelist and playwright , Sofi Oksanen. Moderated by Lannan Center Director, Aminatta Forna.…

Diagram of a circular flow chart showing that body, mind, sould and spirit are connected

The Good Life at the End of Life

September 20th, 2021

Discussion on medical and spiritual views on the meaning of the good life during the last stages of life. Speaking to the issue were Devan Stahl (Bioethics and Religion, Baylor University) and Michael Pottash (Hospice and Palliative Medicine, Georgetown University).…

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Always Take Notes Podcast, Episode 115: Aminatta Forna

August 24th, 2021

Aminatta Forna speaks with the Always Take Notes hosts, Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, about her early work at the BBC, the similarities between creative non-fiction and fiction and her decision to take up a post at Georgetown University.…

2021 Lisa J. Raines Grand Challenge Fellowship logo

Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan Featured as One of the Workshop Speakers at the 2021 Lisa J. Raines Grand Challenge Fellowship

August 13th, 2021

The 2021 Lisa J. Raines Grand Challenge Fellowship funded undergraduate students to conduct independent summer research projects engaging with the grand challenge of “Health and Humanity.” In addition to conducting their own projects, fellows came together as a cohort and shared their research, found exciting cross-disciplinary touch points, and learned from and network with faculty working in the field, including Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan, who presented her lecture “A Career in Medical Humanities: From the Archive to the Clinic.”…

Spring 2021

Collage showing book covers, movie posters, film stills and photographs of different artists. Some the works of art included in the collage are author James Baldwin, the films Boys Don't Cry, Get Out, Moonlight, Black Panther, Schindler's List, and Philadephia, and the books Black Man in a White Coat, Blow Your House Down, You Play the Girl and There Are No Children Here

Using the Power of Narratives to Address Bias in Healthcare

May 12th, 2021

The MedStar Health Institute for Quality and Safety hosted “Using the Power of Narratives to Address Bias in Healthcare”. The event featured a panel of MedStar Health physicians, researchers, and medical humanities leaders, including Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan.…

Northeast Modern Language Association 52nd Annual Convention banner

Laura Hartmann-Villalta Talked about Incorporating Jesuit Values in her Composition Class and Modernism in the Spanish Civil War at the Northeast Modern Language Association 52nd Annual Convention

March 14th, 2021

Laura Hartmann-Villalta presented her papers on “Incorporating Jesuit Values into the First-year Composition Classroom” and “The (Leftist) Worldly Modernism of the Spanish Civil War” at the the Northeast Modern Language Association 52nd Annual Convention, which was held online between March 10 and 14, 2021.…

Toni Lee Sangastiano presenting her work at the Circus 2021 adaptations and possibilities amid COVID-19 event

Toni-Lee Sangastiano’s Perspective on “Circus 2021: Adaptations and Possibilities amid COVID-19”

January 16th, 2021

Toni-Lee Sangastiano was one of the artists invited by the Circus and its Others (CaiO) project, to present her perspective on how the COVID-19 pandemic has impact circus around the world. In this video, Toni-Lee Sangastiano invites viewers to Washington. Her contribution was framed in the Circus 2021: Adaptations and Possibilities amid COVID-19 event, which took place on January 16, 2021.…

Fall 2020

Yersinia Pestis (plague) bacteria

John McNeill Was a Guest Speaker at MIT’s “Plants and Plagues” Session

November 13th, 2020

John McNeill was a guest speaker at the MIT’s “Plants and Plagues” session, which was part of the History of Now: Plagues and Pandemic free webinar course. This course focused on the history of infectious disease, looking transnationally and across disciplines at how plagues and pandemics have made an impact on human and non-human history.…

Two actors of the play Angels in America Part I: Millennium Approaches. One of them is in a hospital bed, the other stands next to him, their fingers are touching

The Great Work Begins: Revisiting Angels in America During a Pandemic

October 27th, 2020

This special program of performance and discussion combined scenes performed by leading professional actors from Tony Kushner’s Pulitzer Prize-winning two-part epic play Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes with insights from experts from the medical, political, and artistic communities on the legacy and continued resonance of the play’s portrayal of the AIDS Epidemic in the context of the current moment.…

Black Lives Matter protest. Multitude of people gathered (all ages, races and genders), a sign says " No Justice, No Peace"

“Such a Time As This”: Racial Justice and the University Series: Racial Justice, Science, and Health

October 21st, 2020

This series of conversations explored how Georgetown faculty’s research advances racial justice. The sessions considered how racial justice produces certain responsibilities for researchers. They also examined how the pursuit of justice informs the impact of the speakers’ work. Beyond focusing on individual work, they also explored how the mission of Georgetown University informs and supports this work.…

Banner for the event "Readings and Talks Featuring Valeria Luiselli"

Readings and Talks featuring Valeria Luiselli

October 20th, 2020

Evening with award-winning novelist and essayist, Valeria Luiselli. This event was moderated by Lannan Center Director and author Aminatta Forna and was cosponsored by the Georgetown Medical Humanities Initiative.…

Banner for the Shakti Powerful Feminine A Navarātri 2020 Speaker Series, featuring Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan

Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan Featured in the Shakti: Powerful Feminine: A Navarātri 2020 Speaker Series

October 19th, 2020

In October 2020, Dr. Lakshmi Krishnan was featured in the Shakti: Powerful Feminine: A Navarātri 2020 Speaker Series. The event centered on impactful South Asian women coming from different realms but united by their energy and boldness. It was co-sponsored by Georgetown Hindu Student Association, Georgetown University’s Women’s Center, Georgetown University’s Dharmic Life, Yale University Chaplain’s Office, and Princeton University Hindu Life Program.…

Maker Hub In Lauinger Library

Making Communities: Public Science in the Time of COVID-19. A Conversation featuring Margaret Talbot (New Yorker) and Don Undeen (Georgetown’s Maker Hub)

October 15th, 2020

What happens when supply line production of essential goods and equipment is disrupted? Can public science offer solutions? Citizen scientists and community labs are developing everything from affordable insulin to low-cost, open-source medical supplies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, maker communities such as Georgetown’s Maker Hub began producing personal protective equipment (PPE) for local healthcare facilities.…

Panelists of the event "A Catalyst for Good: How AI is helping the fight against COVID-19": Maggie Little, Paul Almeida and Ken Mulvany

Maggie Little Moderated Conversation on How AI Is Helping in the Fight Against COVID-19

July 22nd, 2020

In this event, hosted by the Georgetown University McDonough School of Business as part of the Stanton Distinguished Leader Series, Maggie Little moderated a conversation with Benevolent AI CEO Ken Mulvany on how AI is helping in the fight against COVID-19. The panelists discuss how business and technology are being used to help move us out of the COVID19 crisis.…

Spring 2020

The Impact of COVID-19 on Black Americans event featuring Dr. Christopher King, Kaya Henderson, L. Toni Lewis, Charlene Tarver, and Soyica Diggs Colbert.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Black Americans

June 25th, 2020

In this conversation, hosted by the Black Alumni of Georgetown and the Georgetown University Alumni Association, faculty and alumni experts including Christopher King explored the impact of COVID-19 on Black communities and examined how communities can be rebuilt and better protected.…

The "Humanities in the Time of COVID-19" panel. The panelists are Karen Stohr, Cóilín Parsons, Andrew Sobanet, and Nicoletta Pireddu, and the moderator is Dean Christopher Celenza

Humanities in the Time of COVID-19: What Literature, Ethics, and the Arts Can Teach Us in a Quarantine Environment

May 28th, 2020

This virtual panel of Georgetown humanities scholars discussed the role of the humanities in this most distinctive of times. The panelists took French novelist Albert Camus’s 1947 novel The Plague as the point of departure to address how literature, philosophy, history, and the arts can help us understand ourselves in relation to the world, foster empathy and a sense of connection in times of crisis, and help people make everyday ethical decisions.…

James Giordano presenting his work on COVID-19 Demonstration and Lessons of Multiple-Order Biosecurity Risks and Threats

COVID-19: Demonstration and Lessons of Multiple-Order Biosecurity Risks and Threats

March 26th, 2020

James Giordano presented his work on “COVID-19: Demonstration and Lessons of Multiple-Order Biosecurity Risks and Threats” at the “Combating Global Coronavirus: From Isolation to International Cooperation” conference, which focused on the growing concern of the world community with consequences of the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.…

Harriet Washington

A Distant Mirror: Seeing Medical History and Race through the Lens of U.S. Culture

February 10th, 2020

The Medical Humanities Initiative, in collaboration with the Georgetown Humanities Initiative and Howard University, hosted the lecture “A Distant Mirror: Seeing Medical History and Race Through the Lens of U.S. Culture,” featuring Harriet Washington, National Book Critics’ Circle award-winning author of Medical Apartheid.…

Fall 2019

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BBC Radio 4 – Bookclub: Aminatta Forna – The Memory of Love

September 5th, 2019

Aminatta Forna discusses her novel The Memory of Love with James Naughtie and a group of readers at the BBC Radio – 4 Bookclub podcast. The Memory of Love has as its background three decades of unrest and violence in Sierra Leone, Aminatta Forna’s father’s home country and the one where she mostly grew up.…

Spring 2019